Parkland’s now-famous school shooting survivors hold town hall in Irvine

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Parkland Florida high school shooting survivor David Hogg stops in Irvine during the Road To Change tour for stricter gun laws on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

They became celebrities in a way no one would ever expect or want: for witnessing a shooting at their school that ended the lives of 17 people.

Ever since the shocking Valentine’s Day massacre earlier this year in Parkland, Fla., Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School survivors have been speaking out against gun violence.

This summer, they have taken their cause on the road, in a bus tour across the United States – visiting some 75 cities over two months to disseminate their call for stricter gun control laws.

Caitlyn Nojiri, 20, cheers as the Parkland Florida high school shooting survivors and others, take the stage during the Road To Change tour in Irvine on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Parkland Florida high school shooting survivors Ryan Deitsch, left, and David Hogg, along with activist Kelly Choi, stop in Irvine during the Road To Change tour for stricter gun laws on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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Rev. Toia Rankin, left, with Christ Our Redeemer Church in Irvine, comforts Hollie Mileski who became emotional while speaking to the Parkland Florida High School shooting survivors who were on tour promoting stricter gun laws in Irvine on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Rabbi Arnold Rachlis of University Synagogue, left, and the Rev. Mark Whitlock of Chris Our Redeemer Church in Irvine introduce participants in the Road To Change tour for gun control on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Harley Rouda, who’s running against Dana Rohrabacher in the 48th Congressional District acknowledges support for him during the Road to Change tour in Irvine on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

About 1,500 people attend the OC stop of the Road To Change tour in Irvine on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

About 1,500 people attend the OC stop of the Road To Change tour in Irvine on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Parkland Florida high school shooting survivors Ryan Deitsch, left, and David Hogg, along with activist Kelly Choi, stop in Irvine during the Road To Change tour for stricter gun laws on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Caitlyn Nojiri, left, and Bex Whitehead, both 20, applaud as the Parkland Florida high school shooting survivors and others, take the stageduring the Road To Change tour in Irvine on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Parkland Florida high school shooting survivor David Hogg stops in Irvine during the Road To Change tour for stricter gun laws on Saturday, July 21, 2018. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Among the 20 founders of “Never Again” are Emma Gonzalez, David Hogg, Ryan Deitsch, Cameron Kasky and Jaclyn Corin – whose now familiar faces regularly appear in the news.

On Saturday, July 21, the crew made a stop in Orange County, starting with a town hall at Christ Our Redeemer AME Church in Irvine, to be followed by a candlelight vigil and bonfire at the Huntington Beach Pier.

Taking the Irvine shift of their jam-packed itinerary, Hogg and Deitsch joined other young activists – including several from Orange County – on stage to discuss gun violence and how to curb it.

More than 1,000 attendees filled the auditorium, with an overflow of hundreds more in the lobby.

“This is not about swinging districts blue or swinging districts red,” Hogg said, “but about swinging then orange” – the color symbolizing gun reform. “Democrats take money from the NRA, too. We want to hold all politicians accountable.”

Clearly, however, most of the crowd leaned Democrat. Harley Rouda, who is running against longtime U.S. Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher, was greeted with rousing applause upon arrival.

Deitsch recalled an anecdote about an awkward moment shared with Darrell Issa. While visiting the Capitol in Washington, D.C., Deitsch and his cohorts crossed paths with the Republican representative from San Diego.

“He started to quote the Second Amendment – incorrectly,” Deitsch said. “Then he ran ahead of our group to avoid getting on the same elevator.”

The biggest misconception about the group’s mission is that the activists “want to take away people’s guns,” Dietsch said.

“We’re not trying to take guns from hunters but from domestic abusers,” he said.

Following up, Hogg added, “The only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a universal background check.”

Traveling around the country and speaking with leaders on both sides of the political aisle, Hogg said, helps him to understand how deeply gun ownership is embedded in American culture – especially in rural states such as Alaska.

When asked by an audience participant about the “mixed message” of marksmanship classes in Orange County high schools, Hogg said he supports “teaching gun safety.”

Others on the panel disagreed. “I would rather be taught history than how to use guns,” said Chicago resident Arieyanna Williams.

In answer to concerns addressed by Williams, Hogg surmised that the Parkland tragedy has received more attention than inner-city violence “because most of us are upper-middle-class white kids.”

“It is important to use our voice to advocate for communities of color,” he said.

Deitsch pronounced Irvine’s gathering a success – starting with the fact that people showed up.

“If we can create these spaces for conversation,” he said, “we are already doing 300 percent more than Congress.”

After majoring in journalism at the University of Texas, Susan Christian Goulding got her start as a copy editor and reporter at the (late, great) Los Angeles Herald Examiner. She then worked at the (late, great) Santa Monica Outlook and the Daily Breeze as a features editor, writer and columnist. She moved to the Orange County bureau of the Los Angeles Times as a features and business writer. After that five-year stint, she worked as a correspondent for People magazine and a regular freelancer for Readers Digest while raising her two kids, Erin and Matt. During this time, she also wrote a weekly column for the Daily Breeze. Next, she gave up all possibility of free time and earned a teaching credential and masters at UCI. She taught English for four often rewarding and always challenging years in Compton, then at LMU and El Camino College. Missing journalism, Goulding circled back to her original career last year, joining the Orange County Register as a reporter. She also enjoys her return to column writing for the newspaper's OC Home magazine.